Where the Heart Truly Lies
by rayj829
Summary: 2 possible alternate endings to how episode 4x20 (The Princesses and the Frog) could have ended much better for Chair.
1. Chapter 1

_AN: This is 2 separate takes on what could have happened at the end of episode 4x20 (The Princesses and the Frog) had Chuck and Blair actually gotten to talk at the Royal party that evening._

_Here's the first version!_

* * *

"Chuck, I actually like this girl – what's wrong with you, huh?" Nate wondered as he watched Chuck stumble off towards his bedroom with yet another glass of scotch in hand. "You don't even know how to be in a relationship – Blair's lucky she escaped you!"

"Hey!" Chuck yelled as he came back around the corner. "Leave Blair out of this – no one understands what we have!"

"Yeah, no one understands because it's not normal," Nate stated firmly. "She's better off with the French guy," he muttered.

"You can't seriously mean that," Chuck remarked as they stood only about a foot away from each other.

"I saw on Gossip Girl that she's going to some party tonight at the Consulate," Nate announced.

"Who cares? She always goes to parties," Chuck quipped.

"This one's hosted by his family – apparently he needs to get engaged," Nate informed him as he purposely pushed into him as he walked past.

"Not to her..." he mumbled to himself as he decided to make himself presentable for the evening.

* * *

"Arthur, bring the car around – we've got a party to crash," he spoke to his driver over the phone as he rushed into the living room a little while later.

Bending down, he opened up his safe and pulled out the little black box he had been holding onto for over a year now. The same little black box he had gotten shot over last summer.

Opening it to confirm that the one of a kind Harry Winston ring was still there, he let out a deep breath as he knew it was now or never and there was no way that he was about to lose her to some prince.

* * *

He was nearly out of breath after quickly hurrying up the stairs in the Consulate to where the party was being held. Pausing for a moment, scanning the room for Blair, he saw Serena approaching him.

"Chuck, what are you doing here?" she demanded to know as she grabbed onto his arm, trying to prevent him from going anywhere.

"I need to see Blair," he simply stated as he proceeded to walk further into the party.

"You're drunk – just go home. Please! I beg of you, don't ruin this for her," Serena pleaded with him, trying to get him to stop.

"I have something she needs to hear – it's important," he informed her.

"What is so important Chuck that it can't wait until later? She questioned.

"This," he told her as he flashed the little black box.

"Oh my god! Chuck!" she gasped as she recognized the box from Paris last summer. "I may not be in favor of what she's doing, but she really does seem happy – happier than she's been in a long time. Please, don't do this!"

"I have to," he said as he continued to scan the room.

"But why here? Why now?" she couldn't help but wonder.

"Because – if it's a ring she wants, then it's a ring she's going to get," he declared as he finally spotted her across the room, breaking away from Serena to approach her.

* * *

"Excuse me," Blair told the guest she was speaking with as she saw Chuck approaching her and quickly headed towards him to cut him off. "What are you doing here?!" she hissed at him.

"I need to ask you something," he simply told her as he reached for her hand.

"Get out of here – this is not the time nor place for a scene," she snapped at him as a royal passing by caught her attention. "Your highness! Tell me again about your a capella club at Oxford," she inquired as she slid her arm through the man's and proceeded to walk with him, leaving Chuck standing there by himself.

* * *

"You look familiar – did you, me, and a stewardess get to know each other intimately over Lithuania?" Chuck casually asked the older broad as he helped himself to a drink.

"Excuse me! I am Princess Sophie Grimaldi of Monaco," the woman informed Chuck.

"Ah yes, Blair's future mother-in-law," Chuck acknowledged her. "TIts no surprise she went for a prince – Marie Antoinette was one of her favorite roles to play... of course I always eating her cake..."

"How dare you!" Princess Sophie gasped, disgusted by his remark. "And you are?"

"Chuck Bass – the love of her life," he informed her. "Anyone else is just a waste of time..."

"Chuck! Go home!" Blair demanded as she approached them both with Serena right behind her.

"Match, Blair – so you've proved you can score a prince. I admit, you made me jealous," he confessed to her at once. "Now let's go back to my place so you can collect your prize."

"Stop this – this isn't one of our games in high school anymore," she firmly told him. "You're embarrassing me!"

"What? It's not me who's disrespecting these fine people – it's you!" he snapped at her. "Pretending you're going to marry this French phony... it's a joke!"

"Chuck, no one's laughing – don't do this," Serena calmly said to him.

"Blair, please – if I could just show you," he said as he took her hand while reaching for the little black box in his pocket with his other.

"Chuck, stop!" Blair struggled to pull her hand way, knocking into a waiter who was passing by.

"Security!" Princess Sophie called out as nearby guests gasped at the scene.

"Go home!" Blair snapped at him again, hoping he'd get the message this time. "This is enough!"

"I'm not going anywhere without you!" he desperately told her. "Tell your prince where your heart truly lies," he urged her as Louis had appeared after overhearing the ruckus. "Tell him."

"Chuck..." Blair sadly sighed as she was beginning to tremble, confused as to what to say and do as at that moment she felt completely torn between two dreams.

"Tell me!" he begged her, his eyes beginning to well as they stood there in silence as she refused to say anything.

"Sir, we're going to have to ask you to leave," a security detail informed him as they took him by the arm.

"Blair, just give me one minute – please!" he pleaded as security led him away.

"Your Royal Highness, I am so, so ashamed and sorry if my friends and I have caused any trouble," Blair told Princess Sophie. "Sorry," she apologized again as she walked away, Serena following.

* * *

"B... you should go talk to him," Serena urged her once they were out of earshot from the royals.

"Who? Chuck?!" she scoffed at the thought.

"I know he might have caused a scene, but B... you know he really does love you – just hear him out, just for a minute," Serena urged her as they approached the exit.

"I will do no such thing! He completely humiliated me tonight in front of royalty! You knew how much this meant to me!" she cried in frustration as she stormed through the door only to see him sitting there on the steps, apparently waiting for his limo. "How could you, Chuck!" she snapped at him as she let out a deep sigh, causing him to turn his head towards her at the sound of her voice.

"Blair?" he quietly inquired as she could see the tears threatening to fall from his eyes as he did his best to fight them off. "You came..."

"More like I left after the embarrassment you caused me," she quipped. She glanced over at Serena for help who was merely darting her eyes back and forth between the two of them, signaling for Blair to talk to him. "Ugh, fine!" she declared in annoyance as she carefully took a seat next to him on the steps. "What did you want to talk about, Bass?"

"I'm sorry I ruined your shot at being a princess... " he started. "But let's face it – you weren't seriously going to go through with it, were you?" he questioned longingly.

"Chuck..." she sighed, not quite sure herself what to tell him. Would she have gone through it had Louis asked her?

"I need you, Blair. Like I never have before," he stated at once.

"Oh my god... you didn't seriously come here, ruining my chance with Louis, just because you needed your sexual urges satisfied, did you?!" Blair gasped in horror at the thought that something like that wouldn't be beneath him.

"That's not what I meant, Blair..." he said in annoyance, shaking his head as he pursed his lips. "Everything I believed about my father... everything I thought I wanted to be, what I needed to be for him – it was all based on lies!" he began to explain, his voice getting louder as he went on, pausing to calm himself down before continuing. "The only thing that's ever been real is me and you... you know that..." he sadly stated, looking straight ahead at nothing in particular.

Breathing calmly, she sat in silence next to him for a moment before she noticed his fingers fiddling with something in hands.

"Chuck... what is that?" she curiously asked him as she stared towards the object in question.

"Hm?" Chuck questioned, coming out of the thought he had been lost in, turning to face her when he realized she was staring at what he was holding in his hands. "Oh, this..." he replied as held the box up in view. "I figured..." he started only to stop. "It's nothing," he declared as he clutched it in his hand, now concealing it and staring straight ahead once again. "I was drunk when Nathaniel told me about this party and well... it seemed like a good idea at the time, but now..."

"What seemed like a good idea, Chuck?" she pressed him, curious as to what he originally intended to do.

"Asking you to marry me instead," he spoke after a long pause, turning to face her once more, his eyes full of moisture.

"Chuck..." Blair sighed, flattered but in complete disbelief.

"I love you, Blair – I don't want to lose you," he desperately admitted.

"And I love you too – always will – but you're right, that would have been a bad idea as we're not in good place right now. We're not even in a relationship right now," she reminded him, much to his dismay.

"But we could be..." he simply stated as he shut his eyes tight, desperately trying to fight back the tears that were on the verge of falling.

"What about Eva, Chuck? And Raina?" Blair asked him, desperately wanting to know what they were to him.

"I never loved Raina and Eva... she could never replace you," he confessed. "No one could, no matter how much I wish it weren't true... it'll only be you."

"Blair?" a familiar male voice with a thick French accent spoke from behind them. Turning around and seeing Louis, Blair quickly got to her feet to address him.

"Louis, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be inside, mingling with all the royal prospects?" she inquired, confused as to why he was there.

"I brought this, to give to you after you gained the Royal Court's approval," Louis informed her as she pulled out a little black box of his own, opening it to reveal a large yellow diamond. "But without it... this means so much more." Getting down on one knee, Louis continued. "Blair... will you marry me?"

Serena gasped as she couldn't believe what was happening while Chuck bit his lip, refusing to turn around, clenching his eyes shut as tight as he could, wishing he could block out his hearing as well while he hung his head in defeat.

_Where the hell is Arthur?_ He thought to himself.

"Louis... while I'm flattered that you would defy your family and risk losing the throne just to be with me...I... I can't," she finally managed to get out. Chuck opened his eyes and shot his head up, curious as to why she refusing the Frenchman's proposal.

"What? Why not?" Louis wondered, confused as to what had changed. It was then that he noticed Chuck sitting just a few feet away on the steps where Blair had been just moments ago. "It's because of him, isn't it!" Louis demanded to know, pointing towards Chuck.

With a deep breath, Blair slowly nodded. "It is," she nervously admitted. "I... I know I had said I was over him, that I was ready to move on... but the truth is... I don't think I will ever be able to move on from him. As much as I would often like to deny it, I know I'll always love him," she confessed as Chuck let out a sigh of relief upon hearing her words. "I'm sorry, Louis."

"I thought you wanted to be happy? To find your joy once again?" Louis questioned her, confused as to why she would choose a man who had time and again hurt her so badly.

"And I do," she assured him. "Chuck and I were happy together once, and while it's true, he has hurt me in ways I never thought were possible... I've moved past that and I know that if we try, we can be happy together once again," she said. "Your princess is out there, Louis – maybe even upstairs right now – she's just not me."

With a curt nod, Louis turned and walked back inside.

Once he had heard the Prince's footsteps fade away, Chuck turned around to look up at Blair.

"Did you really mean that, Blair?" he questioned, his eyes full of hope.

"Come on – let's just go home," Blair told him as his limo finally pulled up and she proceeded to help lift him to his feet with Serena rushing to his other side, in an effort to also help as the three of them piled into the vehicle.

"Thank you for giving me another chance," he sighed, holding onto her hand and bringing it to his lips for a kiss as he rested his head on her shoulder.

"We'll talk about it in the morning when you're sober," she calmly stated with a slight smile curving on her lips. Knowing what this would mean, she leaned over and gently kissed the top of his head, prompting him to turn towards her, slightly smiling at her also when they made eye contact, before he nestled himself against her once more, closing his eyes as he drifted off to sleep, feeling safe, secure and relieved that everything was eventually going to be okay.


	2. Chapter 2

_AN: And here's the 2nd take on how the episode could have possibly ended, starting from Chuck already being at the party. A lot of it is similar to the previous version, however if you watch the episode, it almost looks like Chuck is trying to hand her the ring box before they knock into the waiter. What if he had succeeded and handed her the ring?_

* * *

"You look familiar – did you, me, and a stewardess get to know each other intimately over Lithuania?" Chuck casually asked the older broad as he helped himself to a drink.

"Excuse me! I am Princess Sophie Grimaldi of Monaco," the woman informed Chuck.

"Ah yes, Blair's future mother-in-law," Chuck acknowledged her. "There's no surprise she went for a prince – Marie Antoinette was one of her favorite roles to play... of course I always eating her cake..."

"How dare you!" Princess Sophie gasped, disgusted by his remark. "And you are?"

"I'm Chuck Bass – the love of her life," he informed her. "Anyone else is just a waste of time..."

"Chuck! Go home!" Blair demanded as she approached them both with Serena right behind her.

"Match, Blair – so you've proved you can score a prince. I admit, you made me jealous," he confessed to her at once. "Now let's go back to my place so you can collect your prize."

"Stop this – this isn't one of our games in high school anymore," she firmly told him. "You're embarrassing me!"

"What? It's not me who's disrespecting these fine people – it's you!" he snapped at her. "Pretending you're going to marry this French phony... it's a joke!"

"Chuck, no one's laughing – don't do this," Serena calmly said to him.

"Here," he said as he took her hand, placing the little black box in it.

"Chuck, stop!" Blair struggled to pull her hand way, knocking into a waiter who was passing by, not realizing what he had just handed her.

"Security!" Princess Sophie called out as nearby guests gasped at the scene.

"Go home!" Blair snapped at him again, hoping he'd get the message this time. "This is enough!"

"I'm not going anywhere without you!" he desperately told her. "Tell your prince where your heart truly lies," he urged her as Louis had appeared after overhearing the ruckus. "Tell him," he demanded. "Tell me!" he begged her, his eyes beginning to well as they stood there in silence as she refused to say anything.

Blair stood there, confused and beginning to tremble as Chuck's eyes were on her. She then noticed the box in her hand.

"Chuck, what is..." she began to question as she slowly opened the box only to gasp at the sight of the Harry Winston diamond before her. Looking at him with complete and utter shock, he nodded as they locked eyes, letting her know he was completely serious.

"Sir, we're going to have to ask you to leave," a security detail informed him as they led him away.

"Your Royal Highness, I am so, so ashamed and sorry if my friends and I have caused any trouble," Blair told Princess Sophie. "Sorry," she apologized again as she quickly walked away, hurrying towards the exit she had seen Chuck being escorted to, as she clutched onto the ring box with Serena followed behind her. "Chuck!" she called out after him as she raced down the stairs, towards the entrance's main doors where security was just throwing him out.

"B! Wait up!" Serena called after her, pausing to pull her heels off so she wouldn't fall.

"No time, S – I need to catch Chuck before he leaves!" she yelled out behind her as she finally reached the doors and was relieved to find him still there, waiting on the steps for his limo to pull around she assumed. "Chuck!"

"You came..." he breathed as he turned around upon hearing her voice.

"More like I left after the embarrassment you caused me," she quipped as she stood in front him. "Explain this," she demanded as she held the ring box out for him to see.

"I think it kind of explains itself, don't you?" he stated.

"But why now?" she demanded to know.

"I need you, Blair. Like I never have before," he stated at once. "Everything I believed about my father... everything I thought I wanted to be, what I needed to be for him – it was all based on lies!" he began to explain, his voice getting louder as he went on, pausing to calm himself down before continuing. "The only thing that's ever been real is me and you... you know that..." he told her as he took her hands in his. "I'm sorry I ruined your shot at being a princess... " he started. "But let's face it – you weren't seriously going to go through with it, were you?" he questioned longingly

She sighed, not quite sure herself what to tell him. Would she have gone through it had Louis asked her?

"I love you, Blair – I don't want to lose you," he boldly confessed.

"And I love you too – always will – but you and I... we're not in good place right now. We're not even in a relationship right now," she reminded him, much to his dismay.

"But we could be..." he simply stated his eyes begging her to consider it.

"What about Eva, Chuck? And Raina?" she asked him, desperately wanting to know what they were to him.

"I never loved Raina and Eva... she could never replace you," he confessed. "No one could, no matter how much I wish it weren't true... it'll only be you."

"Blair?" a familiar male voice with a thick French accent spoke from behind them. As she turned around to see Louis, Chuck let out a slightly audible groan as he turned to face away from the Prince.

"Louis, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be inside, mingling with all the royal prospects?" Blair inquired, confused as to why he was there.

"I brought this, to give to you after you gained the Royal Court's approval," Louis informed her as she pulled out a little black box of his own, opening it to reveal a large yellow diamond. "But without it... this means so much more." Getting down on one knee, Louis continued. "Blair... will you marry me?"

Serena gasped as she couldn't believe what was happening while Chuck bit his lip, refusing to turn around, forcing his eyes to shut as tight as they could, wishing he could block out his hearing as well while he hung his head in defeat, clenching his fists in anger.

_Where the hell is Arthur?_ He thought to himself.

"Louis... while I'm flattered that you would defy your family and risk losing the throne just to be with me...I... I can't," she finally managed to get out. Chuck opened his eyes and shot his head up, curious as to why she refusing the Frenchman's proposal.

"What? Why not?" Louis wondered, confused as to what had changed. It was then that he noticed Chuck standing with his back turned, behind her. "It's because of him, isn't it!" Louis demanded to know, pointing towards Chuck.

With a deep breath, Blair slowly nodded. "It is," she nervously admitted. "I... I know I had said I was over him, that I was ready to move on... but the truth is... I don't think I will ever be able to move on from him. As much as I would often like to deny it, I know I'll always love him," she confessed as Chuck let out a sigh of relief at hearing her words. "I'm sorry, Louis."

"I thought you wanted to be happy? To find your joy once again?" Louis questioned her, confused as to why she would choose a man who had time and again hurt her so badly.

"And I do," she assured him. "Chuck and I were happy together once, and while it's true, he has hurt me in ways I never thought were possible... I've moved past that and I know that if we try, we can be happy together once again," she said. "Your princess is out there, Louis – maybe even upstairs right now – she's just not me."

With a curt nod, Louis turned and walked back inside.

Once he had heard the Prince's footsteps fade away, Chuck turned around to look at Blair.

"Did you really mean that, Blair?" he questioned, his eyes full of hope as he cupped her face in his hands

"Yes, Chuck, I did," she sighed as she closed her, taking his hands in her own. "Come on – let's go home," she told him as she saw his limo finally pull up when she did open her eyes. Linking her arm through his as they walked down the stairs together and towards the vehicle, a slight smile appeared on both their faces, as they both knew that everything was eventually going to be okay.


End file.
